1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein relates to methods for the absorption of liquids. In a particular aspect it relates to the absorbing of fresh oil leaks or oil spills.
2. Description of Prior Art
Oil spills nd leaks into the environment are a frequent occurrence. While the recent major spills from large oil tankers in Prince William Sound, off Huntington Beach, Calif., and in the Gulf of Mexico garner most of publicity, numerous other accidents also put substantial quantities of oil into the environment. Such accidents include tanker and barge collisions (often in enclosed waterways such as harbors), oil storage tank failures, pipeline ruptures and the like, result in harbors, rivers, beaches, estuaries, and coastlines becoming fouled and contaminated with liquid oil. Thousands of hours of cleanup work by hundreds of people are often expended, with usually only a small portion of the oil actually being recovered and removed.
In addition, there are a multitude of small oil spills, each of which is harmful in its own immediate area. Defective cars and trucks drip oil onto driveways, garage floors, parking lot surfaces, and streets, not only dirtying and discoloring the surface, but frequently seeping below the pavement and raising the potential of contaminating ground water. Similarly, many users of oil (auto and truck mechanics, service station employees and do-it-yourselfers) often spill oil onto the ground or pavement while performing their tasks.
(It will be understood that the term "oil" as used herein includes the entire spectrum of liquid petroleum products, including, but not limited to, crude oils (of both light and heavy grades) as well as refined products, including gasoline, naphtha, kerosene and lubricating oils.)
Many different techniques have been suggested for cleaning up oil spills. Application of chemical and biological agents is commonly used, but there are potential environmental risks from these agents themselves. Physical containment, as with floating booms, is of limited effectiveness, particularly where the oil is spilled into a rough water environment (as at sea) or where containment equipment is not readily at hand and cannot be made available
It is generally recognized that one of the most environmentally sound methods of dealing with oil spills is to bring the oil into contact with an absorbent. The absorbent absorbs the oil and the partially or completely saturated absorbent can then be readily collected and disposed of in a safe and not polluting manner. Absorbents have several distinct advantages: they commonly act not only to absorb the oil but also to restrict its mobility and, thus, confine the spill; they can be easily used by all people attacking the oil spill, not just by specially trained workers; they can be brought into contact with the oil in variety of ways, including air drops and machine and hand application; and they are normally not themselves toxic or harmful or difficult to handle.
Over the past several years there have been a wide variety of materials put forward as intended oil absorbents. These have included tree bark, wood fiber, cotton linters, cellulosic materials such as corn cobs, cigarette filters, paper pulp, cotton, polymeric resins, granulated rock, peat moss, saw dust, straw and sponges. Most have proved ineffective in actual field use. Some materials are too light to be spread effectively, being blown away by the wind. Others become waterlogged and sink when used on oil spills on bodies of water. Others are simply too exotic, expensive or rare to be practically useful. Finally, most work only in a single environment: they are useful at sea but not on land or vice versa.
It would therefore be of significant value to have a method of collecting oil spills which utilizes an oil absorbent material which is highly absorbent, inexpensive, floats on water, non-toxic, and easily disposable. It would also be advantageous for the method to be similarly useful for collection of other liquids, including water, petro-chemicals and the like.